Contrada Life The Historic Centre of Siena

Siena was a long time rival to Florence, that is until Florence won and took over the city. Where Florence is essentially of the Renaissance, Siena retains it's medieval character.
Siena is another Etruscan hill town dating to early in the 1st millennium BCE. Legend has it that Siena was founded by a son of Remus and nephew of Romulus.
The 1st picture looks over old Siena built of typical brownish brick. The 2nd picture is of the main street. This street has extra importance as it is part of the Via Francingena, the 2,000 km pilgrimage route from Canterbury to Rome. The 3rd picture is of the Porta Romana where the road to Rome and the pilgrims leave the city.
The 4th picture is the church of San Domenico where the head of St. Catherine of Siena's head is kept as a relic.
The 5th picture is the Piazza Salimbeni, the name of the family that live here. The building at the rear is the headquarters of the Monte dei Paschi bank, said to be the oldest as it has been in continuous operation since 1472.
The 6th picture is of a building I'm told was built solely to prove the power of the Medici when they took over.
Now we come to the other event Siena is famous for: the Palio. This is a horse race dedicated to St. Mary that happens twice each year where the city neighborhoods compete. 10 of the 17 contrades as the neighborhoods are called have a horse. This is a big deal. Each contrade has its colors, symbols and pride. The race lasts about 90 seconds with the horses running around the Piazza del Campo in the 7th picture. The 8th picture is a local street in one contrade, but the art above is of the horse that won the Polio for that contrade. Each contrade has a small stable where it's horses stays for 3days before the race (picture 9), and each has an Oratory church like the one in the corner that is used for the Palio.Leggi altro